Month: November 2007

I used to complain that my life is boring and predictable. Boy have the tables turned! Hubby and i spent Thanksgiving weekend in Tennessee with his family. We have been very spoiled in having spent every single holiday with both of our families. This year, we had to agonize and make the grueling choice to spend the holiday with hubby’s family. Hubby’s grandpa is still in the hospital down there and the whole family (except the SIL and her family) drove down to have Thanksgiving with Grandpa.

It was a wonderful time. Grandpa has been improving steadily day by day and will soon be strong enough to move to a rehabilitation center where they will work with him everyday to get him back on his feet. Hubby’s family is absolutely wonderful. We stayed at his aunt’s house and although she is extremely busy with her job, she made us the most delicious breakfast and supper everyday. She is truly SuperWoman.

We drove back yesterday and got home about 11:30pm our time. Hubby plans to go back down later this week and hopefully grandma will come home for a few days. She desperately needs some time off from the hospital routine. She has lost so much weight and her emotional state is on the fringe. I hope she comes home to get her bearings and gather up some strength for the days ahead.

While we were at the hospital one day, i happened to overhear hubby’s aunt talking to a colleague. Apparently, grandpa was 48 hours away from dying when he was at the hospital here. If he had not been transported to Tennessee and properly treated, he would not be here with us today. I had no idea the extent of his troubles and i will cherish this Thanksgiving holiday for the rest of my life. Thank you, Lord, for letting us have him a little while longer.

Since this week is Thanksgiving, it is only appropriate that i take some time to give thanks for the good things in life. Although i am a firm believer in taking time each day to be thankful no matter what the circumstances are.

This weekend i drove down to Tennessee to spend some time with hubby’s grandpa and bring hubby home. Grandpa had a great weekend. His platlets are coming up, the infection is going away, and his potassium is in check. On Saturday, us girls took grandma to the mall to get her a new pair of shoes and we ate lunch at the Cheesecake Factory. YUM! When we got back, the physical therapist was just leaving and said grandpa got out of bed and stood up for about 10 minutes with his and hubby’s help. Grandpa seemed to be in good spirits and chatted with us frequently.

A friend of mine who went through a similar situation suggested we keep a journal in the room and everyday we write down his progress, names of doctors, tests performed and results, who visited, etc. That way, as family comes and goes they can look back and see what went on since they were there and leave a note for family coming next. I mentioned this to hubby’s mom and she thought it was the most brilliant idea ever. We went right downstairs and bought a journal to start right away.

All in all, it was a wonderful weekend. Hubby’s family is extremely close and can’t stand to be away from each other. Of course, there is always some family drama and those who drive us batty, but i’m not going to focus on that. We are hoping to go back down during the holiday weekend, but not sure how or when.

I just had to share this story. It really made my day. Hubby’s grandpa was moved to a hospital in Tennessee and pretty much the whole family followed him down there for a while to oversee things. Unfortunately, i have to work so i’m here and not there. So, Hubby has been gone for a few days and my mom invited me over for dinner since my dad is out of town on business and why should two lonely people have to eat by themselves?

Now, you have to know my mom. She is prudent, religious, and strictly set on her values and morals. If she were ever to cuss, you better take cover cuz it must be something REALLY bad.

Anyway, so I’m visiting my mom while dinner is cooking and somehow the conversation turned to foods with health benefits. Blueberries are good for preventing cancer, etc. She looks at me and as serious can be says, “Well, i heard you should have a handful of nuts every day.”

I couldn’t help it. I busted up laughing. She, of course, realized what she said and was immediately embarrassed. I, of course, couldn’t stop laughing.

Today is a good day. No, today is a GREAT day!!! Everybody stop, drop, and thank the Lord.

Hubby received a call from the mortgage company today and the loan modification is 95% done and it hasn’t been approved yet, but it looks like our new APR is going to be 5%. Can you believe it! FIVE PERCENT!!!! If i could do back flips, i would do them all the way home. I’m so excited i could cry. This is the most wonderful news i’ve had in a very, very long time!!! This means our new monthly payment will be roughly $1,500 – a far cry from our current payment of $2,689. That is almost HALF! Although the 5% rate is only fixed for 2 years, it will only bump once to 6.75%. I can totally live with that. That’s better than our original loan! way better.

It has been a long, LONG two plus years that we have been struggling. This is the first major step in the right direction.